failing of thy happiness. It is true, here, the waters do only bubble, and they may and often do fail; but, there, thou shalt bathe thyself in an infinite ocean of delight there, thou shalt lie at an ever-bubbling fountain of sweetness: God shall be eternally there, and thou shalt be eternally there: he will be eternally glancing and smiling on thee, and thou shalt be eternally warming and cheering thyself in that sunshine. There fore, think with thyself, if indeed God can be exhausted, if heaven itself can be impoverished, if infinite riches of glory can be all spent and consumed, then and not till then, can thy treasure fail thee: never shall one star of thy crown twinkle, much less shall it ever be eclipsed. 1 St. Pet. v. 4. We shall receive a crown of glory, that fadeth not away: it shall be for ever as glorious, orient, and flourishing, as it was at its first putting on. Indeed, eternity will be the perpetual beginning of thy happiness.

And thus you see how suitable this treasure is to the Nature of the Soul; in that it is Spiritual Treasure, for a soul that is a spirit; and it is Durable Treasure, for a soul that is immortal.

2. As Heavenly Treasure is suited to the Nature of the soul, so also to the Necessities of the Soul.

What is it, that the soul can stand in need of, that it cannot be supplied withal from hence? Doth it need a price to redeem it? here is laid up the precious blood of Christ, that was shed for the sins of many. Is it pardon and forgiveness that it needs? here is abundant mercy. Is it sanctification and holiness? here are riches of grace. Is it joy and comfort? here are abundant consolations. Is the soul wretched, and poor, and miserable, and blind, and naked? here is gold to make it rich: here is white raiment to clothe it, and eye-salve to recover its sight. Indeed there is nothing, that the soul can want or desire, but you may have supplies for it from your own treasure; from that treasure, that you have laid up in heaven. See that rich place, Phil. iv. 19. My God shall supply all your need, according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus: all your needs; not only your corporal needs and necessities, but also your spiritual necessities. Here, all Earthly Treasures fall short: the exigences of the outward man they may relieve, but the greatest abundance of them cannot quiet a troubled conscience, nor appease an angry God, nor take off the guilt of sin; nor can they redeem the soul from eternal wrath: no, the redemption of the soul is precious, yea, too precious to be purchased by all these things, and it

ceaseth for ever. When God frowns upon the soul, and conscience lours, and hell-fire flashes in the face of a sinner, how truly poor and miserable is that man, that hath no better support and comfort than these unsuitable things! All the world, as great as now it seems to be, will be judged too vile a price to procure one minute's ease. What would the soul then give for a Saviour, for a slighted and despised Saviour, to interpose betwixt it and justice? Believe it, then you will have other thoughts of the favour of God, of an interest in Christ, and of this heavenly and spiritual treasure, than now you have. Now, in your peace and prosperity, possibly, these appear to you to be no better than fancied treasures and airy riches. but, when the days of sorrow and darkness overtake you and come upon you, when God shall drop into your souls a little of his wrath and displeasure, then it will be in vain to seek ease from the world: all your pleasures, treasures, and enjoyments here below, will all tell you it is not in them to relieve you: you may as well seek to cure a wound in your flesh, by laying a plaister to your clothes: no; it is grace, that can then stand you in stead: it is that only, that can reach the necessities of the soul; and, without this, all your riches and treasures are but dear vanities, precious vexations, that will stand by and see you perish, yea and perish eternally, but cannot supply and help you.

iii. I come now to a Third thing, wherein the excellency and the riches of this Heavenly Treasure do appear: and that is, because they are SATISFYING TREASURES; and so are not the treasures of the world.

Solomon himself, when he had reckoned up many items for honours, and pleasures, and riches; yet, at the bottom of the bill, at the foot of the account, he casts up the total sum by two great cyphers: All is vanity and vexation, saith he: vanity, in themselves; and veration also, in the use and enjoyment of them they, that make more reckoning of this treasure, will be mistaken in their account. And is this the price of thy sweat and care? Is this the price of thy early and late endeavours? Nay, is this the price of thy sins, for which thou destroyest thy soul and forgoest eternity? What! to hoard up vanity and emptiness, to grow rich in vexation! Wilt thou stretch thy conscience for that, which will never fill, but torment thee? Are these the great stately nothings, that the whole world admires, and runs mad after? Alas! you may as soon grasp

your arms full of dreams, and hug your own shadows, as fill up the vast and boundless desires of your souls with these earthly things; that have scarce any proof of their reality, besides the vexation and torment that they bring with them. These things are to the soul but as wind to the stomach: gripe it they may; but they can never fill nor satisfy it. It is true, indeed, that you will find Esau, in Gen. xxxiii. 9. seemingly satisfied with his present condition, when he tells Jacob, I have enough, my brother but this was rather because he was ashamed to acknowledge his want, by receiving from a fugitive; than any real satisfaction, that drew this speech from him no; there is such a paradox in an earthly mind, that makes it true, that though oftentimes they have too much, yet they never think they have enough. But Heavenly Treasures are filling and satisfying Treasures though riches are empty, though honours and dignities are flatulent and windy, and crowns are lined with troubles, and sceptres are made massy with cares set on them; yet heavenly riches are substantial: the crown of glory and immortality is lined throughout with the down of eternal contentment and satisfaction.

Now these Heavenly Treasures are satisfactory in Two respects..qu

They are satisfactory in Themselves. And,

They put Satisfactoriness into Earthly Enjoyments.

So that the soul, that possesseth Heavenly Treasure, finds contentment and satisfaction in every condition.

1. Heavenly Treasures are satisfactory in Themselves.

He, that enjoys them, needs look out no where else for happiness and contentment.

(1) The Treasures of Grace are thus satisfactory, where there is the light and evidence of assurance, to tell the soul how rich it is.i. brin

Grace, indeed, is this treasure, that may sometimes lie deep hid in the heart. When the soul is in the dark, under some gloomy fears or in a state of desertion, it doth not then know that it hath such a treasure; and, therefore, it cannot receive contentment and satisfaction from it. But, when the Spirit of God darts in a beam of evidencing light into the dark vault, this rich treasure discovers itself by its own shining. Now, this shine of Heavenly Treasure is Assurance; and, when the Spirit darts in a beam of light to discover it in the heart, when it sees how rich it is in love, in faith, in hope, and in all other precious

graces of the Spirit, it cannot sufficiently prize and value its own estate. It is true, indeed, that a gracious heart never thinks it hath enough still, it is craving and labouring after more: still, it complains, that its graces are too weak, and those weak ones too few. Yet this holy covetousness carries no tormenting, perplexing anxiety and vexation with it: while it complains of the poverty of its graces, yet it prizeth them above all the world; and thinks its estate to be infinitely blessed and happy, if it hath but any degree of assurance: and, though the man be but poor and despicable in the world, yet ask him, whether he would change conditions with the greatest and the richest sinner on earth, he will tell you no: he values his present estate above ten thousand worlds; nay, he would not lose the least degree nor the least filing of his graces, for whatever enjoyments a poor world could proffer him. Such satisfactoriness there is in the Treasures of, Grace ! and well may it be so, for grace with assurance is no less than heaven let down into the soul. And, therefore, it is remarkable in Heb. x. 34. Knowing in yourselves, saith the Apostle, that ye have in heaven a better and a more enduring substance: so our Translation, renders it; but, in the Original, it is, Know, that in yourselves you have a better and a more enduring substance in heaven: those,, that are assured of the truth of their own graces, have a heaven in themselves, a better and a more enduring 'substance in themselves; such discoveries of God, such sweet peace and tranquillity of soul, such overflowing joys of the Holy Ghost, that heaven itself is never able to bestow other kind of happiness than this is, though there they shall have it in fuller degrees and measure...

(2) The Treasures of Glory are infinitely satisfactory.

If there be so much in grace, that is but the earnest, how much more abundant satisfaction is there in glory, that is the inheritance itself! Psal. xvii. 15. When I awake, I shall be satisfied with thy likeness. When I awake: that is, when I awake in glory, after the short slumber of death, then I shall be satisfied with the likeness and similitude of God.

Consider, here,

[1] The true reason of the vanity and unsatisfactoriness of all earthly things.

It is, because none of them are so good as the soul is; nor are any of them so great, as to be able to fill up the vast capacity of the soul. . The soul is like a wide gulf: throw in pleasures, and profits, and honours, nay, the whole world; yet there is a

vast hollowness in the soul still, that can never be filled up by these things. Your souls are of a noble and excellent being; and, excepting angels, they are the top and flower of the creation: and, therefore, it is a debasement of them to cleave to any thing here that is worse than themselves. Now, so long as all things here below are less than the soul and worse than the soul, the soul cannot possibly receive satisfaction and contentment in them. But God is infinitely great; and, therefore, He can fill the soul and God is also infinitely good; and, therefore, He ean satisfy the soul, so that it shall not desire any thing above or besides him.

Consider,

[2] The soul is to be made happy, with the same happiness, wherewith God himself is to be for ever blessed.

And must not this be infinitely satisfactory? Wherein doth God's infinite blessedness consist? Is it not in the close, near, intimate, and immediate enjoyment and fruition of himself? Is not God himself his own happiness? Why this also is the happiness of the saints; a close, intimate, and immediate enjoyment of God. Enlarge then, O Soul: spread forth thyself wide: make room for thine own glory: thou art to be made happy, with the same happiness, that God himself is blessed with. He is blessed, in the eternal enjoyment of himself; and thou shalt be blessed, with the eternal enjoyment of God also. Enlarge then, O Soul: spread forth thyself wide: stretch out thy desires as wide as heaven itself; for the God of Heaven will fill them. And is not here enough to satisfy? Certainly, that soul must be very necessitous, that an Infinite God and an Infinite Good cannot fill up and satisfy.

And, thus, you see that Heavenly Treasures are satisfactory in themselves.

2. As they are satisfactory in themselves, so they make Earthly Comforts and Enjoyments to be satisfactory also.

That soul, that hath laid up and made sure of Heavenly Treasure, finds satisfaction and contentment in every outward condition. He, that enjoys most of heaven, enjoys most of earth; though others may possess more than he: and what he hath not, contentment makes him not to want. What says the Apostle, in Phil. iv. 11. I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. And what can any man have more? If the Lord af ford him but a little of these things, he is content; and, if he ncreaseth them too much, he can be but content. O what a